


Star Child

by Vesrimm



Category: Hoshi no Kaabii | Kirby: Right Back at Ya!, Kirby (Video Games)
Genre: Cringe culture is dead we continue this fanfic that was a coping mechanism for me when I was younger, IDK what to warn for i mean, Multi, Self Ship, anyway welcome to self insert hell ft. your local spooky fool (-:, ill add cws when I can, lore that actually predicted fucking star allies im going to lose my SHIT, maybe more in the future??, oc/sona x multiple crushes, self insert with way too much lore, there's experimentation related stuff. someone getting kinda screwed up when a ship crashes., yall will see what i mean later
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-12
Updated: 2021-01-12
Packaged: 2021-03-16 19:09:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,356
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28711794
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vesrimm/pseuds/Vesrimm
Summary: Awaken, and heed the call of the stars. Child born on an old knight's wish, trapped under Nightmare's clutches long ago. The stars have set them free, and now, they must learn how to control their power and save everyone, with the help of another child hailing from the sky.-I have been enabled. I will be posting this here.
Relationships: OC/multiple
Kudos: 5





	1. Break For It

**Author's Note:**

> Note about the first few chapters; I started writing this years ago. I attempted multiple revisions. Chapter 3 I started back up again in the middle. It WILL be a little wonky.

It’s like waking from a deep nightmare, except, one you weren’t even aware you were even having. Her lungs felt like they were breathing the first real breath in decades, her eyes screwed shut as a strange throb rang through her skull.    
  
It was strange; no longer was a bed pressed against her back. Instead she felt like she was floating in water, but nothing entered her lungs except the air she regularly breaths. But even then, everything feels off.

Dana forces her eyes open, her vision blurred, but it’s easy to tell this isn’t her room; that the feeling of floating isn’t from just waking. Whatever this place is, hazy and unfocused, she is able to tell very quickly that it’s not a dream or hallucination. A dream cannot feel this real, and her anxiety-induced hallucinations were only shadows moving just outside of her radial vision.

The headache rings harder now, like something trying to crack through her skull, as she cradles it in her hands and lets out a whine, muffled by the mask over her mouth and nose. Her eyes begin to adjust enough for her to see herself more clearly. A torn surgical gown, iv’s that pump glowing fluid into her veins, and a strange mark grafted onto her arm.

Attempting to turn her neck is only met with a brief glance of cables attached to her spine, and an intensely sharp pain that urges her to look dead ahead once more.

_ “....Alert….” _ A mechanical voice rings through the dense fog of her mind.  _ “Containment has been lifted for X91023.” _

Curious words, answered only by the draining of the thick water and the release of the cables, the iv’s, and the lowering of the glass barrier-- An answer that informs her  _ she _ is “X91203”. When the mask follows suit, she gasps and breaths in the stale air, stumbling barefoot and disoriented off of the platform. The room around her is hazy, but she can make out walls of smooth metal, computers and machines hooked up to whatever she had been suspended in, recording things in an alien tongue that she somehow  _ understands _ , but her head aches too much to retain any information it provides.

Her lungs heave rapidly, feeling unused to real air, choking on it like an unfamiliar sensation as she draws it in. Many questions buzz through her mind, but what cuts through sharper is a voice that suddenly brings comfort to her beating heart.

_ “You must listen.”  _ The voice is smooth and powerful, but carries the slight tone of a caring mother’s words. Barely familiar but clearer than the noises surrounding her.  _ “We don’t have much time. Follow this light, she will guide you to your only chance of escape. Even if all seems lost, even if you think you might be captured, do not stop running. Do not look behind you. Resist the pull, and run.” _

Her eyes catch sight of a wisp, hovering in front of her where nothing had been, and when it shoots off, her legs manage to find the strength to chase after it through the sleek metal halls of a strange and horribly familiar lab. Doors open and close by presence as she tears towards the only freedom she’s aware of.

The last door opens to a world of grey, of thick smoggy air and rain that sears wounds she wasn’t aware of. She races across asphalt with bare feet, but the only thing keeping her from stopping because of the pain is the strange,  _ terrifying _ shadow looming over her subconscious, reaching towards her soul and causing her blood to chill with the powerful instinct to  _ run. _ To spare not a glance to the humans suffering in the streets behind the fence, following the will of alien beings like tamed sheep, and to ignore the few humans who strut down the street with rich finery, who claim the smile of one who betrayed their own kind for the money they now boast, like an accessory or a statement instead of a resource. 

Something is pushing her to run faster than she knew she could. She  _ knows _ what awaits if she doesn’t stop. She can feel so many memories of this place beneath a fragile surface, despite assuming she’d been living a life elsewhere this whole time. The shouts, the alarms, she knows not to let them stop her. She knows she has to keep running.

The light zips into a ship, and despite the metal-clad creatures now running to stand in front of it, she kicks off the cold ground of the alien hangar, launching herself forward and using momentum to fling past them and into the vehicle, just as the doors slam shut. Standing is harder to achieve now, but the wisp is still wanting her to do something.

She drops herself into the chair, watching as the wisp hovers over the buttons and switches it wants her to activate. When it’s content, it hovers away from the console. Dana frantically buckles herself in, gulping as her heart pounds in her throat.

The wisp flickers a goodbye as it blinks out. She can’t even croak out a thank you as the ship suddenly rips forward and crashes through the hangar door, roaring into the sky and calculating the destination the small light must’ve plugged in before fading away. The ship crashes through the wall of the hangar and rockets into the sky, Dana gripping her seat and gritting her teeth at the horrible crashing sound it made. 

The ship jolts from a direct hit, which she can only assume was from weapon’s fire.. Despite the damage, the warp drive kicks on, and the place she thought of as “home” is left behind, never to be seen again. The only sound that remains, is the hum of the engine and the circuits sparking from the damaged bulkhead. At least the ship still works...Having it blow up moments after escaping isn’t a very appealing thought.

  
  


Everything feels so hazy, her body and mind sluggish from what she can only guess is the setting withdrawal of the strange drugs injected into her body. How long had she been dependent on those? Days, years? Was anything she experienced before now  _ real? _

The deafening silence is too much for her to tolerate, but it’s quickly broken when the ship drops out of it’s light-speed advance and slows, shaking as the orbit of a planet takes hold. Her only view of the world through the window is brief as metal shutters cover the windows. Strange, star-shaped, with two rings around it...How odd, for something to turn out like this.

_ “Warning -- Gravitational stabilizers are offline. Unable to escape the planet’s gravity well. Prepare for crash landing.” _

Not a very comforting prospect, having one’s stolen ship smash straight into the surface of a planet. Hopefully the hull won’t crumble like a tin-foil. Without anything to shield herself with, she remains buckled into the seat, shielding her head with her arms as she hears the metal strain from the force of breaking the atmosphere. There’s a deafening whine as the ship hits the planet’s surface, computers bursting with sparks and metal twisting and snapping. Everything happens so fast, yet a scream can’t even leave her lungs as she falls unconscious.

  
  
  
  


_ Her mind sinks into the depths, into the lulling darkness of slumber. A void that seems empty, but the powerful presence she felt before -- and the name tears through her mind, for a moment, filling her with knowing and dread. _

**_Nightmare._ **

_ The elongated claws reach through the darkness, but just as quickly as they wrap around her frail body, a mass of glowing white light and feathered wings strikes out, allowing her to fall swiftly back into the waking world. _

  
  
  
  


….The taste of blood is heavy on her lips as the world slowly returns to focus, as reality steals her back. The ship is destroyed, beams fallen and wires snapping and hissing. She feels a sticky warmth from her lower abdomen, and a terrible pain that burns through her nerves. And yet, she finds herself able to  _ tolerate _ it, even barely. She’s so familiar with even a simple ache being too much, and yet, in this new frontier, she’s able to bring herself to move. What horrible things had she gone through, that agony is tolerable? Perhaps she doesn’t want to find out...

There’s debris sticking out of her flesh, some twisted deep, others not so much. She knows not to mess with these, not to rip them out. Ironically, it’s the only thing keeping blood  _ inside _ of her body right now. Her only hope is to see if this world is populated by a friendly civilization; one that will save her life without question. No matter what that lab did to her, she doubts it gave her the magical ability to not bleed to death from massive stab wounds. Quickly, she opens the small medical kit still managing to cling to the hull, and wraps her strangely marked arm up, as well as the wounds she can cover without needing to pull out the debris.

Of course, there will be a problem if they don’t have iron-based blood and can’t work around alien organs, but she’ll cross that bridge if it even arrives. She stumbles out of the ship, ignoring her screaming nerves and her legs that threaten to buckle any moment. Staying in a busted up ship won’t do her any good, especially if there’s a chance something could explode in the engine. 

Any chance of survival will be elsewhere-- it’s slim, perhaps non-existent, but she’d rather die trying to find help instead of waiting around for someone to find her-- and even if she was found, what if it’s the people she  _ just _ ran from? Going back into a vat doesn’t sound very good. Not after busting her ass to get out of there in the first place.

At least she still bleeds red, so maybe she’s still human. They didn’t change her blood, at least. Probably. 

She grabs a large, broken branch of a tree to use as a walking stick. It’s crude, but it makes it easier to put her weight on the branch then onto her shaking legs. They feel like they could give out at any moment, but she has to try to push herself. The mysterious entity who helped her escape, they seemed to navigate the ship to this planet, so maybe, just maybe, they did it because there’s help waiting for her here.

Squeezing her eyes shut to settle the dizzy spell coming on, she slowly makes her way out of the crash-site and onto a dirt path. Seems like a spot traversed many times, so which way? She glances each possible direction, trying to scope out the details. One direction seems to have the slightest uphill incline, leading to a mountain faintly peeking over the thick canopy of trees, and the other is downhill. Hopefully, if there is a settlement, it’ll be in the easier direction. If not, to put it simply; she’s screwed, unless she’s found before she expires.

Her pace is slow, trying not to open her wounds further-- although she wishes it was only an excuse to admire the lush scenery, but it really isn’t. She can barely admire how much nature seems to thrive here with the burning and throbbing pain wracking her whole body. Even the rocks digging into her feet don’t even seem to bother her compared to how horrible it is to try to even breathe right now. Every breath feels like a gamble, coming to only a wheeze and nothing more. 

She just needs to push forward until she finds help…. This will all be over soon, one way or another…She prays it won’t be by death, or returning to that “life” she just fled from. She just needs to find someone who will lend a hand.

She just needs to….

….

  
  
  


It’s another day where she finds herself sitting beneath the large shade tree, atop the hill looking over Pupu village. While she has her novel in hand, Fumu glances up every once in a while to check on her little brother, Kirby, and the village children as they kick a soccer ball through the grassy fields. 

She prefers days like this, where nothing really goes on. After all, she’s always having to intervene on Dedede’s usual set of schemes on what feels like a weekly basis-- although, he’s always up to no good, but there’s a point where it’s a real problem for everyone, and not just something to roll her eyes over and continue with her day.

She returns back to her story, flipping the page and continuing to inch closer to the end of another novel.

**_“DUCK!!!”_ **

Fumu quickly lowers her head. It’s barely enough time to avoid the soccer ball that’s been sent sailing over, bouncing off of the tree trunk and rolling back into the grass.

“Bun!”

“What? I warned you.”

The younger boy stops the rolling ball, crossing his arms as Fumu slowly stands up. 

“Because you should be more careful! Someone could get hurt, you know!”

“Well, that didn’t happen, so I don’t know what the fuss is all ab--”

A loud  **_BOOM_ ** rocks the sky, the kids quieting down in an instant as their attention snaps to the fireball soaring over the village and crashing into the forest. Fumu could just  _ barely _ make out the shape of it, but it had to be a ship.

Another strange visitor to Dreamland?

“Poyo!!”   
  
Without any sort of warning aside from his shout, Kirby tears off down the road with determination in his blue eyes, towards the smoke rising from the crash site. 

“Ah, Kirby!! Wait up!!”

Fumu chases after him. He’s always so eager to help a new friend...But what if it’s someone hostile? This could end badly if they’re not careful.

She hopes it’s that second Star Warrior...

She remembers clearly when the village gathered in front of the great Kabu. His wisdom and foresight mentioned the arrival of three mighty warriors of the stars. Everyone was so surprised to see one of them, Kirby, was just a baby, awoken too early from his stasis. Dedede made great efforts to try to turn everyone against him, but he's grown to be very important to everyone in the village. Despite how they seem to forget that from time to time...Will the next one be a baby like Kirby, or a mysterious warrior like Sir Meta Knight? 

Fumu shakes her head and keeps chasing after Kirby. She has to focus on what’s happening now, not curious speculation. One way or another, judging by the condition of that ship as it fell apart on entry, the pilot will probably be hurt. Demon beast or not, they should probably try to help, right? Maybe even one of Nightmare’s creations would remain docile in gratitude…

When they finally catch up to Kirby, Fumu and the rest of the children freeze in alarm.

An alien, wounded and bleeding, holding onto a walking-stick with shaking hands. She’s dressed in a torn, dirty, and gray hospital gown, covered in bandages and left eye squeezed shut. Her breathing is labored, but she’s trying very hard to hold a conversation with Kirby in a quiet, strained voice.

What also stands out to Fumu is the symbols on the gown. Holy Nightmare-- the alien’s a Demon Beast. But, she doesn’t  _ seem _ to be hostile. Any other would probably take a chance to attack Kirby like this, all alone in the forest. But she seems...well, almost as naive as Kirby is about things, with the fact she stopped to start a conversation she can’t even understand.

She ducks out from behind the bushes, Bun following suit, with Iroo, Hohhe, and Honey tagging along behind. They all want to help. Fumu especially-- maybe this Demon Beast  _ escaped,  _ Holy Nightmare must be really bad to those unwilling to fall to Nightmare...

  
  
  


Dana was...quite surprised to see something tearing up the road towards her. A small pink creature, waving his little arms frantically as he stops in front of her, crying “poyo”s she clearly can’t understand. He looked really worried, and she dug the walking stick into the ground a little to try to talk to him. He seemed to understand her, though she can’t say the same about what “Poy poyo poyoo!!!” means.

It wasn’t long after that he seemed to actually come with help. Five children, two looking similar to humans but with yellow skin and no visible noses and ears, and three that were sort of sack-like in shape.

“Can...Can you understand me?” It’s the girl with the pony-tail who speaks-- and to Dana’s surprise, she  _ can _ understand. 

“Y….Yeah.” Talking still did hurt very much, but she’s actually glad to see and understand someone finally. A heavy wheeze as she grits her teeth. Every word is getting harder now, but when she opens her mouth to speak, the girl holds up her hand.

“Don’t try to talk, okay? We’re going to get you help. Iroh, Honey, Hohhe, can you run back to the village? We need the adults to help us. I’d prefer if Sir Meta Knight could lend a hand, but anyone who’s not afraid of carrying a wounded person will do.”

The three kids quickly agree, running back down the path.

“Okay, we’re going to take this slow. If it gets too hard to walk, we’ll wait for help to come.”

Dana slowly nods, her pace just as slow as before, but at least she knows this place really  _ is _ going to help her. If she doesn’t fall face-first into the dirt before they reach the doctor. The two kids wrap their arms under her shoulders. They’re barely shorter than her, so it’s not too hard for them. The small pink ball of a creature walks behind them, like he’s going to make sure no one sneaks up on them. She’s unsure how he’ll help, but she appreciates it.

Despite how cold and clammy she feels, she keeps walking. It’s a sudden surge of dread-- not anxiety, something far more. Awareness. 

A snarl rips from the bushes, causing everyone to stop. She sees a canine beast prowl out of the shadows. Thin and gangly, long spines situated on its shoulders and four eyes on its face, elongated fangs bared as a threat. The feeling coming off of it, it reminds her of the creatures she saw on Earth. Was it a stowaway…?

The small pink creature runs in front to stand protectively, holding his arms out and puffing his cheeks to give his best angry face.

“Kirby, inhale it!” She swears, the boy sounds like he’s commanding a Pokemon. Kirby...that must be the pink creature, who scrambles to open his mouth and attempt to inhale the creature. It’s like a powerful vacuum, enough to make a few twigs rip away from the trees, but the beast doesn’t budge. It seems to be immune to whatever “inhale” does. Without a second thought, the wolven beast lurches forward, swiping Kirby out of its way with its tail, focusing its eyes on Dana.

_ “Return...” _ It snarls-- she understands it, but the others seem to only hear a growl.

In a freak and sudden surge of instinct to protect these kids, Dana grabs her walking stick and swings at the creature’s head, sending it staggering back and yowling in pain as it splinters against its eyes-- while also sending Dana onto her knees as her support shatters into pieces.

The girl wraps her arm under Dana’s shoulder again, furrowing her brow.  _ “This is bad…” _

Kirby rolls out from under the bushes, looking tough again! However, the creature regains its posture, other two eyes still able to lock on to its prey.

_ “You will submit...Nightmare will reclaim you...Come back to us...Or hope he will be able to salvage your corpse...” _

  
  


It lunges again, reaching its claws out for her, when a sudden blue of blue flies out from the bushes, slamming into the side of the beast. A strange hero, wearing a cape and a steel mask. Something about him calls out to her-- so important, so  _ familiar _ , but not in the bad way like the name “Nightmare”. Something...she’s missed dearly? He makes her feel safe, yet part of her wants to cry in desperation, and she can’t remember why...

The beast clammers back onto all fours, and she can feel the emotions radiating from it. Hatred. Disgust. It recognizes him as an enemy, something that causes it to stop trying to call her “back” and focus on the kill. The masked man draws the hilt of a blade, electricity surging as a golden and jagged sword forms. The edge glows as he slashes, a beam of light extending and slashing through the beast. It  _ howls _ in agony as its body splits in two, turning to dust instead of leaving gore in its wake.

“Sir Meta Knight!”

As he turns, gold eyes shine from the mask and lock onto Dana. He almost seems to freeze, even if only for an instant.

“Sword, Blade.”

Like names are a command, two knights appear seemingly out of nowhere, each bending their legs with one knee on the ground, awaiting orders.

“I need one of you to carry her, and the other to ensure there are no more demon beasts following us.”

While the one with the plumed helm disappears from sight, the knight in cerulean armor approaches Dana. She knows he’s giving her a moment, respecting her personal space and allowing her to decide if she wants a stranger to carry her. She does surrender and relax, letting him scoop her up. It hurts a lot to be moved again, but she grits her teeth and bares it.

Without another word, this Meta Knight turns and begins to lead the small group through the forest. The whole time, Dana manages to keep herself awake and keep her aching eye closed.

Eventually, a village comes into sight. As she’s carried to the clinic, many of the inhabitants stare curiously. She doesn’t blame them, she  _ is _ the alien here….a very wounded alien, at that. A door is held open for the knight carrying her, and they enter a small clinic. She feels such relief that they  _ do _ have a clinic. Even if the equipment might not be super advanced, she...hopes they can at least patch her up and help her recover.

Of course, the doctor looking horrified does not help her feel less anxious. Maybe it’s just shock over the wounds, and not realizing he’s ill prepared for this sort of situation so suddenly. 

But as Dana’s lowered onto a surgical table by the knight, he gulps and searches for a vial of medicine.

“I’ve never seen your species before, but a patient’s a patient!”

She feels a very terrible fear of the syringe, and looks away. After the injection, she quickly feels her senses going dull. The last thing she sees are those glowing, yellow eyes…


	2. Welcome to Pupupuland!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Old Chapter - Written Oct 2019, edited early 2020. I chose not to edit this one too much since I wanted to work on Ch3. Any things that were clearly changed are because I don't know how to read.

_ A soldier who had wished for a child. As stoic and powerful as he was, that was the wish he spent before the altar. And a miracle, as it was answered. Master Creator awoken for a moment, to cast a single star before the knight's eyes. As the god split into the light, and the long stolen darkness lost the glimmer of power it still held, the star began to form into an infant. _

_ There was no dna to borrow, a god without its whole self, and a former creation of nightmares. A process of randomization proceeded, the basking light fading to reveal this child of stars. A human offspring, pale skinned with curious blue eyes. _

_ "Take our Vessel," the motherly god spoke. "Our heir, your precious child. It will inherit our power and yours. Destiny is set, and you are now in charge of how it plays out." _

_ The goddess dips its head. _

_ "What will you name it, knight?" _

_ The silence is not from shock, but adoration the knight feels, holding the star child. He feels the connection, his soul resonated during the creation, tying strings and forming a powerful bond. He knows what it should be called.  _

_ "...D…." _

….

Waking in a bed has never been more comforting. It's much more welcome than being suspended in a vat of thick, lukewarm fluid likely designed specifically for suspension in stasis. Her body is still sore, however, but that doesn't come as a surprise. She's alive, that's what matters. The shrapnel was removed and her wounds are closed and bandaged. 

"I see you're awake."

The voice of that masked savior, who her gaze turns towards. Again, those golden eyes are familiar and comforting. Why? A desperate question that burns in her soul, but is she ready for what answers she may hear?

He stops her with a gentle touch to her shoulder after her attempt to sit up. "I'm afraid you haven't recovered enough yet. The surgery was only yesterday. Resting is all you must worry about now."

_ "But those….things…." _

"Will not harm you here."

Dana sinks into the bed, trying to breathe steady. All of this, she knows it's not a dream now, but a strange reality. Was everything else a dream? What was even real…?

"You likely have many questions. I will answer some of them, but not all. Overwhelming you further will likely do more damage than good."

That's fine, something she suspected. She takes a deep breath, looking at her bandages. Simple questions first. Simple answers. 

_ "Where...am I…?" _

"Planet Popstar. More specifically, a village known as Pupu Village. The country itself is called Dreamland, or Pupupuland. It depends on who you ask."

_ "The...one who res...rescued me...had the ship come here… for some reason…" _

"Interesting. Perhaps the reputation for peace led to its choice."

You know the real reason, Meta Knight. You know why Wisp brought her to you. But you worry telling her may irregulate her emotions, and you'd rather train her ability outside of the prying eyes of the village. 

  
  


_ "What… did I even escape from…?" _

A more serious question, but not risky answering. She already knows how dangerous  _ he _ is to her.

"Nightmare, and his galactic-conquering company, Holy Nightmare. While it is too soon for me to explain what happened to you, I will tell you that you are incredibly lucky to have gotten away."

_ "Y...Yeah, it… was pretty scary…. like something was looming over me…"  _ She heardーno,  _ felt  _ the name "Nightmare" during her dream as the boney claws grabbed at her. It was… terrifying, to be sure. But what might’ve been  _ worse  _ was the fact it bore familiarity. She knows Nightmare. But how? Perhaps it was simply because he oversaw what was done to her, but...No, that doesn’t seem to be all of it...

There were those strange monsters, too. She heard the creature speak in words as clear as day, but no one else understood it as anything but growls of threat. Why was she able to hear its words? These questions...maybe they’re too serious right now. She’ll try something that could be gentler.

_ "Who… are you? You're… familiar, somehow. I don't…. know how, but…" _

"I am Meta Knight. As to the rest of that… your memory will be unclouded eventually. You'll come to the answer soon." As he turns on his heel towards the door, he pauses. 

"I believe that regardless of what may have been done to you, you'll still desire to protect this world from Nightmare's clutches. If this is true, then consider my offer for when I return; I can train you as a Knight. You may not realize it, but you have the potential."

Golden eyes glance back, and he steps through the door. His wish nearly two decades ago… the wish that created her. He remembers it well.

_ You returned her to me...I thank you for that, Creator. _

But now, he has a challenge.

"Sir Meta Knight." His two servants step out from where they were waiting. "How is she?"

"Her wounds recover fast, but I made sure she knows to rest regardless."

"This person…" Blade Knight glances to the clinic. "Is she…?"

"...I will answer your questions back in the barracks." Prying ears are everywhere, and he has a reputation of mystery. He starts down the dirt path back towards the looming castle.

Hopefully, Dedede won't do anything moronic… and that Dana inherited his newfound patience over the impulsiveness of younger years. 

…

Dana lays in bed, staring at the ceiling. He'll train her…? She's so familiar with being weak and fragile… But he spoke of her memories. If he knows her from her pastーand she strangely trusts him completelyーthen her life up to now, what she knew of it… was a dream. Was it manufactured to keep her down, to let whatever Nightmare was doing easier? Strange experiments and lies to keep her lulled into a dream that finally broke...

She winces as her body burns for a moment, like a web of cracks running through her, amplified on the left side, where the strange tattoos are. 

_ I'll accept his offer… it's a new life, and he's already giving me a place… _

Things to miss dearly and things to look forward to...She pulls the blankets closer to her, shutting her eyes. 

Deep breaths. Hear the sound of birds outside, the leaves rustling in the trees...It reminds her of the Earth she knew…. What a place to crash on, even if it was planned by some strange outside force. Oak trees, birds? Considering the state Earth was in, she doubts those remain there. In an unaltered state, anyway.

Opening her eyes again, she catches a glimpse of green and orange ducking under the window. If she could speak loud enough, she’d say it’s fine to come out, but her throat still aches. How long has it been since she’d last spoken, a decade? Two? She doesn’t remember anything, if they allowed her out ever and erased those memories, overwrote them with the dream, or if she was always in there. She had a nightmare of running from something in a lab. Dreaming within a dream...But was it  _ really _ a nightmare, or a distorted memory? The halls were familiar somehow, so perhaps she'd been awake before...

“Poyoooo!!!!!”

A pink puffball catapults himself over the kids, who’ve been peeking into the clinic for some time now. He quickly runs across the room and hops onto the edge of Dana’s bed, a happy smile on his face as he wiggles his arms and babbles. She feels she  _ may _ eventually come to understand what he’s saying, but it’s too scrambled in the back of her mind to comprehend yet. Maybe he’s saying he’s glad she’s okay?

_ “Your….name was...Kirby, right…?” _

He nods, pointing at himself with his stumpy arms. “Poy poyo! Kaabii! Kaabii!!”

It’s kinda like baby talk, but with a baby who can understand more things than his little round face lets on. The way he says his own name makes her smile, at least. He plops himself into a sitting position as the door opens again.

“Oh, I’m sorry, we didn’t think he’d try to get in through the window!” Those kids again, the ones who helped her. Dana smiles faintly, waving one of her hands. At least she can move that.

_ “It--It’s okay...I don’t mind visitors.” _

“We should probably introduce ourselves, since it sounds like you’ll be staying in the village.” The girl with the ponytail smiles as she speaks. “I’m Fumu! This is my little brother Bun, and some children from Pupu Village. Iroo, Honey, and Hohe.”

Bun folds his arms behind his head and nonchalantly smiles, while two of the other kids dip their heads. “It’s nice to meet you!”

Dana turns her head a bit.  _ “It’s nice to meet you all.I’m...I’m Dana.” _

Fumu holds back a gaspーit's been long enough that the others might not realize, but… this must be the second Star Warrior! No wonder Sir Meta Knight offered to train her...and she's heard tales about many Star Warriors being turned into Demon Beasts. Dana really is lucky...

“So, you really escaped Nightmare, huh?”

“Bun, she’s still recovering, you don’t need to ask her about that!”

“What, she’s  _ free _ now, isn’t she?”

“She’s just undergone a stressful experience, she needs to rest her  _ mind _ as well as her body!”

Siblings for sure. Dana sighs, sinking into the bed.  _ “It’s fine. I’m still not quite sure what really happened entirely. I...only know that Nightmare’s dangerous.”  _ Speaking slowly gets easier...

  
  
  


Fumu frowns, but it’s one of worry. She knows this person is a Demon Beast, but from what she understands, a lot of them also defected to becoming Star Warriors...It seems Dana may be one who has no obedience to Nightmare. A “defect”, in all intents and purposes. It’s likely what allowed her to escape; nothing to chain her down once the physical shackles had been shattered.

“From what we know, Nightmare is the head of a galactic-conquering company, like Sir Meta Knight said. He creates Demon Beasts to help him overtake worlds he himself cannot set foot on. We...don’t quite know what protects our world from him, but we still don’t want to let his creations overtake everything and find what’s keeping us safe.”

She tries to lighten the mood, gesturing to Kirby, sitting on the bed still.

“Kirby may not look like much, but he’s actually a super-powerful warrior capable of inhaling enemies or their attacks and gaining their power! Of course as you saw in the forest, there are limits. Some Demon Beasts simply don’t have any ability for him to copy, or are just too big. I’m sure if one of those spines came off, he could have become Needle Kirby, but thankfully Sir Meta Knight dealt with it.”

As Dana looks over at Kirby, Fumu can tell what’s going through her mind. The sweet little baby being a powerful warrior tends to shock a lot of people, visitors and natives alike. But even if he  _ is  _ strong, he’s still a baby who needs help and guidance to grow.

_ “That’s amazing. That explains what he tried to do back there…” _ She reaches out her hand, patting the top of Kirby’s head. Like a cat, he leans into her touch.  _ “You’re a brave kid…” _

“I should also warn you about something else. Our king--”

The sound of tires screeching to a halt outside and loud shouts to have curious villagers clear out of the way makes Fumu cringe. Shoot, of course his timing is this bad…

The door swings open with a little too much force, but only enough to make everyone in the room jump.

“I hope none of you kids are planning anything with our alien visitor!” Escargon scolds the small crowd with a smirk as he and the self-proclaimed king enter the recovery room of the clinic. Fumu already knows there’s probably some stupid scheme going onーafter all, Dedede tried to chase Kirby out.

“We were just checking on her!” Honey cries out. “She was hurt really bad, all of us were scared!”

  
  


Now, Dana feels like something in a zoo. The penguin creature, who’s obviously the king Fumu was going to warn her about, stands back, obviously squeamish of the bandages covering her body, some still blood-stained and needing to be changed soon. The snail, however, is the one examining her suspiciously.

“So, you’re the alien visitor, hmm? You haven’t come to do anything suspicious, have you?”

_ “No…? I… just crashed here. It… wasn't my intention to cause alarm. I didn't think the ship would do that." _

He crosses his arms, frowning. Perhaps plotting, though it may be hard to do so at the momentーShe's trying so hard to be polite despite the weight on her chest. 

“Hmm! Well, then you have the honor of meeting his majesty, King Dedede, immediately upon arrival!”

The king coughs into his fist, taking a step forward, but still keeping his distance. Is he worried because of how beaten up she is, her strange tattoos, or the blood? He easily writes off the nervousness he is with a loud laugh.

“Gyahaha! Yes, I’m far more interesting to meet compared to these troublesome brats. I’m glad to welcome another subject into my kingdom.”

  
  


The king is grinning. Oh boy, he’s planning something. Perhaps his next silly plan is to try to sway her onto his side. Which...could be dangerous, with how little they know about her, but Dana seems to have little interestーShe's more anxious than she was before, actually.

“How about a royal tour?” Escargon seems to have caught on to...whatever scheme they’re pulling. “These brats would barely impress you!”

_ “I’d...rather not move right now, thank you….I’m still really sore." _

“Ah, your majesty, please! My patient just got out of surgery yesterday!” Yabui cries as he leaves his office. “She doesn’t need all this excitement!”

“We were merely offering her a tour, is that a crime, Doctor Yabui?”

“I’m afraid that she can’t leave her bed right now. The stitches could open back up, and she’d be bleeding all over the place.” That’s enough to make Dedede wimp out and step back again. 

“If you want to drag her on your latest scheme, you’ll have to wait, Dedede.” Fumu huffs. 

“Scheme? How dare you accuse his majesty of wicked plots!”

“Last week you tried to use television to trick everyone into chasing Kirby off, trust isn’t easily recovered.”

“Humph! Well, we’ve given her our offer, nothing more! We’ll take our leave to allow her to rest, as you insist!” After speaking, Escargon whispers something to Dedede, and they return to the car parked outside, tires screeching as it tears off.

Dana winces.  _ “Nghh..” _

“He’s a bit of a handful…” Fumu pitifully smiles. “He purchases a lot of things from Nightmare….”   
  


“I haven’t actually seen him pay them. I don’t even know how big the numbers are.” Bun snickers. “I’d feel bad for the salesman if he wasn’t, y’know, the enemy?”

“We should probably make sure he’s not going to do anything crazy, though...We’ll visit you tomorrow, okay?”

_ “Yeah…! Don’t get hurt, okay?”  _ Dana smiles, her eyes slowly closing as one by one, the visitors leave, and her bandages are replaced with fresh ones. This place...so strange, and yet, she’s glad she’s staying…

It feels like home.


	3. New Home

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Chapter started on Oct 2019, revamped and finished in Jan 2021. Finally we are back on track. And I wrote way too much on this one.

“Not much time has passed….” Yabui steps away, crossing his arms and nodding. “But you’ve recovered enough to function normally. You’ve healed faster than most of my patients, so you’re good to go. Just don’t try to lift one of those new televisions or something, and keep those bandages on until you’re told to remove them.”

It’s been only four days since she arrived, and these wounds have already healed somewhat. Perhaps she was given quick regeneration back in that shady lab…

While she hasn’t met the other villagers yet personally, Fumu did bring her some clothes the local tailor made for her after examining the measurements of her shredded lab gown. The shirt is a little long, and the shorts a bit too baggy, but they work, and soon she’ll be able to pay for real clothes. Probably. It'd be nice to have a fashionable outfit.

Stuffing the bottle of pain medication he prescribed into her pockets, Dana takes her first step out of the door. Her legs are still wobbly, but the doctor believes she doesn’t need crutches or a wheelchair, just time to get used to them again. The warm sun on her face feels like something she’d never experience again, clear skies with patchy clouds, an ocean on the horizon over the hills, a thick forest in the other direction, with mountains and volcanoes…A castle that looms on an ocean cliff, where that strange king lives. It’s such a beautiful place on an strangely shaped world…

As she turns, she sees the knight with his cape wrapped around himself once more. “Oh….! Sir Meta Knight…!”

“I see you’re finally able to walk.” His voice claims a tone of comfort, of ease, as he steps out of the shadows. Despite being a foot shorter than her, he’s still pretty big, just round. “Have you considered my offer?”

Dana nods. “Yeah, I’m...gonna accept it. New life, y’know? Sounds like a pretty good opportunity."

  
  
  


“Excellent.” He turns his gaze towards the castle. “I already took the liberty of getting a room prepared for you.” Meta knew she’d accept, that she’d feel their connection, even if she didn’t remember him. He begins to walk, and she dogs along beside him, quiet, but noticeably a bit excited. 

There are secrets she will have to learn alongside normal training. She'll come to realize the strength she possesses, the alterations to her being done by the hand of  _ that man… _

Luck was with Dana, that she came out with her mind intact. Her self was never lost, and she claims no loyalty to Nightmare. The only problem is her memory, but being familiar with him means it will return in time. He just has to wait, as he always has.

Thousands of years fighting that fiend, and nearly twenty more in which the Star Warriors suddenly faced a violent defeat, the star child taken, and hope was lost. He's gotten used to waiting for a miracle, waiting for the right time to banish the bad dream that is Nightmare himself. 

Another thing that troubles him is the mark nestled under her bandages. He's only seen curses like such inflicted upon those who disobeyed and attacked Nightmare during a turning. Dana must have been released from stasis for tests, and was punished for attempting to fight Nightmare. Even if its a dormant curse, it'll try to influence her...he'll have to teach her to tame that darkness, before she ends up lost like his old friend.

"So you live up in that castle?" Her curious tone shakes him out of his internal debate. 

"Yes. I serve his majesty, thus I reside in the castle barracks."

"OhーI have to work for that guy…? No offense, but he's…weird."

He only chuckles, shaking his head. A rare moment to probe amusement from the stoic knight. "I never said I enjoyed being in his service; I am well acquainted with the foolishness of the King."

Of course, he has his motives for following the dictator, but such words are not safe for the open road. She'll have to listen to his stories when they're away from the danger of an unwanted audience. His gaze lands on the shrubbery, for a moment, before he focuses his attention back on the road.

Dana herself has fallen silent again, watching the road as if she is attempting to map every detail, memorize everything about this new place. It’s been such a sudden, and drastic change. A life on twenty-first century earth, deemed only a dream. Waking up in a lab, escaping, crash-landing…

Yet, she’s handled it pretty well. It was horrifying, but...she’s pretty excited now. This place...it’s wonderful. She misses her friends from the dream, but if she’s lucky, perhaps they were constructed from something that exists here. Perhaps they’ll come back, in some way. And as long as that memory of them remains in her heart, none of them are truly gone, are they? They’re still alive as a part of her, and she’s going to make sure they continue to live in this new place.

As she looks up, she notices the castle is much,  _ much _ larger than she expected from the distance. Yet the carvings of Dedede’s face strewn about in the walls and statues also tell her it’s likely more of a monument to vanity than something created for immediate importance. His ancestors most likely needed to boast about the wealth and power they stole. And even if they  _ did _ earn it…They were still vain, and the decor is tacky.

Meta Knight coughs to call her attention back to him, and only now she realizes she walked a bit too far, and returns to his side. 

_ “Sorry…” _ She mumbles.  _ “I was, uhh...distracted. I can tell Dedede doesn’t have much taste…” _

_ “You are correct about that.” _ Meta Knight remarks, his glove securing the handle of a wooden door. Down another set of halls, the barracks are finally found. She spots the other two knights who helped save her, turning to face the door to greet their master and new ally. 

“Sir Meta Knight, you have returned.”   
  
“Has she agreed…?”

“I wouldn’t have brought her here if she denied.” The man shakes his head, entering the room. “Dana. This is Sword Knight, and Blade Knight. They are two of my servants, and will assist in your training.”

To her luck, as he introduces them to her, he gestures to identify the one he speaks of. It’s easier for her, since she knew their names, but not who’s who. Her face heats up as she dips her head, messy hair whipping into her face.

“I-It’s nice to meーmeet you! I...I never got to thank you two for helping me, s-so...thank you very much.”

“...It was no trouble. We won’t let anyone fall victim to Nightmare.” Sword Knight is the one to speak, having had to pause for a moment to realize just  _ what _ he’d say.

Meta Knight sits down, motioning for her to take a seat across from him. She does so, fidgeting, curious yet nervous. 

"Now that we are somewhere more private, I will tell you what you currently need to know, and answer your questions. There are still many you may have that must be answered in their own time."

She didn't expect anything less than the mysterious air he had to put on. Dramatic effect, or does he only divulge necessary information, and nothing more? Dana nods, folding her hands. 

"What you escaped from, was the capitalistic empire of a man named Nightmare. For thousands of years, his empire has been conquering the universe, spreading from galaxy to galaxy, taking over worlds by purchase or invasion. This, he carries out with his Demon Beasts, creatures made in a lab by scratch or by turning something else."

He stands, walking up to her and removing the bandages on her left side. The black mark still weaves through her skin, more vivid than any tattoo.

"The latter, he did to you."

"You.. You mean I'm one of his monsters?"

  
  


"No. It is true you are now a Demon Beast, but that does not make you his. You are still yourself, and while he has tried very hard to overtake you, branding you with this mark, you retained what makes you  _ yourself _ . You escaped, and if I had any suspicion you were evil, I wouldn't have saved you."

…That isn't true. He would have fought to wake her up, to break the hold over her. But she managed to cling to her sense of self, her stubbornness and determination drove through.

"...You will, however, need to be aware of that pull he will have over you. You will have to learn to master the powers you were forced into possessing. Training will help you grow to be able to master the abilities that will come to surface.”

It is his turn to fold his hands, as he thinks of the next thing to tell her.

“Training you...is not the only purpose of your apprenticeship. It is to protect you. Nightmare will no doubt want you back. His Demon Beasts are frequently purchased by Dedede. I also do not doubt that higher-ups in his empire will try to hunt you down as well. In the meantime, they may not know you're here."

Dana sucks in breath through her teeth, having pressed her palms together in front of her mouth in a "praying" style.

"...Let me. Catch up on all this. Dedede...buys stuff from the guy who did this to me?"

"Yes. Nightmare sells his creations across the universe."

"Why are you...helping him, then? Why are we… helping him?"

A question he will need to address. She may not trust him if he refuses. 

"...I was a general in the Galactic Army; the Star WarriorsーA force trying to stop Nightmare. He bred those beasts faster than we could fight them. Many of our soldiers defected, or were corrupted. He even went after cadets, and… the family of many soldiers."

_ Like he went after you,  _ he thought. 

"I knew my only hope of finding the next generation of Star Warriors, was to find a planet of peace that beasts were being purchased on, yet Nightmare couldn't touch. Kirby was the first to arrive. An infant star warrior, awakened two thousand years too early for his kind. You… are the second. An escaped experiment whose heart was too stubborn to be lost to Nightmare. Something about this place may have called you, or something may have guided you here. I served Dedede so I could have a chance of finding you, and a position to protect you. Kirby...he is young, but powerful, and doesn't have a darkness within to fightーhe's had friends by his side since he arrived, and he's far too young to understand training. You...I chose you to train, because you are special."

She feels… prideful, to be told that. Really happy, warm... Why? It feels like her worries melt away for that moment, like he centers her, chases her fear away. She feels… safer. Safer than she's known for a while. 

"Oh. I'm… guessing you don't tell Dedede he's buying from someone so terrible 'cause he'd be too stupid to believe it, then?"

"That isn't far off from the truth. He has believed those lies from the company for a long time, but also knows Holy Nightmare is terrible. Would my words sway him? I honestly doubt it. But I’ve taken many chances to act against his wishes."

Dana slowly nods. "I… understand, then, actually. You have to put up a guise to protect what's important, right? So… I’ll probably have to get smart about being able to defy Dedede like you do..."

Yes, that's exactly it. But he cannot say why she's  _ really  _ important. Not yet. And it's not because of the fact she's his  _ daughter _ , no. It's the fact that the gods reincarnated her soul, and entrusted her to himーthe fact she is a creation  _ of  _ Zyveouxー the holder of the Master Crown, a great being who birthed the universe...

He doesn't know everything about her  _ past _ incarnation, only that she had one, as Wisp said before. That her past life had died in time that hadn't yet come to pass for him, that this cycle wasn't exactly linear. But that doesn't matter now, does it? She's here, she can't remember anything but the illusion fed to her, yet she's familiar with himーand the sliver of hope that she'll remember him glimmers in his battered heart.

He watches as she furrows her brow at the mark on her arm before she wraps it back up.

What Nightmare did… when Meta saw the state she was in, his eyes were seized by a red,  _ enraged _ glow. It threatens to return when he thinks of what was done to herーNo matter what, what was done is a terrible crime. But to do it to a child? Someone so young and defenseless, who only barely learned how to talk? That alone makes it infinitely worse. 

“I...uh… what should I do now? Do I start training immediately, or…?"

“I have a feeling the children will be eager to see you again. Bun and Fumu live here in the castle, and Kirby is often with them. It isn’t dangerous for you to explore the castle to find them, either. Dedede is a fool, but unless he’s up to his antics, he’s harmless.”

“...What if he is up to them, though?” She looks back with a hint of worry etched onto her expression.

Blade Knight, however, is the one to speak this time. “If you’re in danger and unprepared, we’ll protect you.”

“We won’t let you get hurt or captured again.” Sword Knight dips his head. Both of them do, as if making a vow. Meta Knight gives a nod to her, agreeing with them and lifting some weight off of her chest. 

“Don’t worry. Wander around and become familiar with your new home, I’ll have Sword and Blade find you when we have dinner prepared.” 

A chill runs down her spine, and that familiarity she has tells her that she’s experienced his cooking, and it’s  _ awful.  _ Dana dips her head and slips into the hallway, looking left and right. Okay, she saw where the throne room likely was, those massive doors, so she won’t go that way. She’ll go in a direction she hasn’t seen yet, beaming in wonder when she walked past what appeared to be the servants, who glanced at her with equal curiosity. They seemed busy, though, so she didn’t bother them.

Instead, she continued looking, peeking through the cracks in doors to identify what rooms held what. Empty guest bedrooms, more hallways, storage rooms...It was only after a few halls that she found a library. Dana slowly closes the door before she looks through the books, trying to find something of interest--Okay, everything  _ was _ of interest. History of an alien world was at her fingertips, yet she was too excited to really grab anything. Could she even read it? She’s going to assume not, but if she understood everyone here so far, maybe Nightmare messed with her brain to let her have some sort ability to translate everything with ease. Who knows. 

She pulls a random book out instead of choosing. Judging by the cover, she’d assume it’s history. It takes a few moments for the words on the cover to make sense, but as she flips open the cover, she finds that it reads quite easily. It’s like the language was one she always knew-- which answers her theory.

“If you’re looking for genuine history, you’ve got the wrong library. Everything in Dedede’s library is going to say his ancestors came long before any Cappy tribes-- Which is wrong.”

Dana turns, smiling as she sees Fumu standing in the doorway.

She slips the book back into its place. “I was mostly seeing if I could read any of it-- but yeah, it did seem like I was reading a lot of nonsense as soon as I opened it.”

“I don’t even know why he keeps all these books here, unless they’re for Escargon. Dedede can’t even  _ read _ anything other than picture books.” Fumu giggles, sitting down. 

"I'm glad to see you're out of the clinic. We've all been really worried! You were in really bad shape when you came here…"

"Yeah, I… sure wasn't expecting the ship to crash like that. But then again, I… wasn't really expecting any of this, to be honest." Dana sighs, crossing her arms. "I'm lucky I ended up here, everything happened so fast and…”

Dana trails off, her gaze diverted to her bandages. 

"I’m still so dazed, but...Metaーer...Sir Meta Knight gave me the opportunity to work with him, so at least I'm going to have some guidance. But there’s still a lot I need to learn about this place…”

Fumu snaps her fingers, her eyes lighting up with an idea.

“How about we show you around? I’m sure everyone would be happy to see you again and to know you’re alright!”

She looks up at Fumu, pausing for a few moments before nodding.

“That sounds great! Since I’m not starting training today, Sir Meta Knight said I can explore as much as I want.”

“Great! Come on, I told Bun I was going to try to find you before we left for the village.”

Fumu leads Dana out of the library and down the hall. Eventually, she’ll have to memorize every detail of this place, make a complete mental map. But right now, she won’t pressure herself with that-- she’s, well, incredibly disoriented currently. She does at least know where the library is, as well as a few assorted rooms and Sir Meta Knight’s, which extends to the living quarters of the four residents; Sir Meta Knight, Sword Knight, Blade Knight, and now herself.

“Sis! There you are!”

Standing near the front gate is Fumu’s little brother. She remembers meeting him when the stolen ship made a crash landing, and back in the clinic. There were also those village kids and...

“Poyo!!”

A certain pink ball runs up to her, waving his little arms with starry eyes and a wide smile.

“Bun, Kirby, it’s nice to see you again!” She smiles, dipping her head before briefly crouching to pat Kirby’s head-- he’s soft, and wiggles excitedly, leaning into her hand in a manner that reminds her of a cat.

“Bun, since she’s going to be living here now, we’re going to show Dana around Pupu village.”

“Really? That’s awesome! My sister’s so brainy that she can tell you pretty much everything about this place.”

“I’m not sure if I should take that as a compliment or not.” Fumu sighs, shaking her head. “Anyway, let’s head down to the village! I’m sure everyone wants to say hi.”

The four of them make their way down the winding dirt road towards the village. It’s a bit of a walk, but despite having come up this hill earlier, she’s not that tired during the descent. She’s sure she can thank the...  _ changes _ … for that.

“You already know by now, but this is Pupu village!” Fumu features around with an open hand. “It’s the only village in our country, but it’s peaceful here, despite the trouble occasionally caused by Dedede.”

“I’m probably gonna see a lot of that soon, huh?” Dana sighs, rubbing the back of her neck. “Since I’m working and training under Sir Meta Knight now, which also means I have to work under Dedede…”

Bun stops walking for a brief moment. “What, you get to work with Meta Knight? That’s really cool! Who cares if Dedede’s able to boss you around too? Meta Knight’s always great at finding his way around that, even when he’s directly ordered to try to stop us.”

“Eh, that’s true…”

“You don’t have to worry about that right now, though.” Fumu reassures her as they step into the town square. A circle of buildings surround a tree in the center.

“Over there is the police station.” She explains. “Although, it only seems to ever have one prisoner. Chief Borun does his best to keep the peace, even if there isn’t much crime around the village.”

Well, they can’t very well arrest Dedede, can they? A quiet quip in the back of her mind as she looks around. He’s the king, and they’ve put up with his mischief before in the past, right? Maybe everyone’s just become numb to it or something-- she’ll learn eventually.

It is when she starts to turn her gaze away from the buildings that she again, notices the curious gaze of multiple villagers.

“Oh, Fumu-sama! This must be our new visitor, right?”

One of the approaching villagers is one rather well dressed-- considering a lot of the villagers lack any clothes, or only wear a shirt and a hat, like in his case. But then again, they don’t really need to wear anything else, considering their body formation is very sack-like.

“Mayor Len, this is Dana! She’s going to be living here, so we’re giving her a tour of Pupu village!”

“I see! It’s always nice to have a new face in the village!” The mayor smiles, clasping his hands together. “We’re all glad to see you’re doing alright! Everyone saw the state you were in when Sir Meta Knight brought you to Yabui…”

“Weren’t some of the adults the ones who fainted?” One of the kids asks with innocent curiosity, but the adults, who  _ know who they were, _ are sweating profusely.

“Ehehe, well… Do you have a place to stay? We were happy to make a house for Kirby, so…”

“Actually, I--... I uh, Sir Meta Knight offered me a position, so I took it. I’ll be staying with him in the castle, so you don’t need to trouble yourselves with that!” Dana dips her head. “I appreciate the offer, though! You’re all really kind…”

“Oh! Well, would you at least allow us to celebrate your arrival?”

“H-Huh??” Dana jumps up with wide eyes. Celebrate…  _ her arrival?  _ “Only-- uh, only if you really want to! I don’t want you to feel pressured into doing that sort of--”

“Splendid! Fumu-sama, why don’t you continue to show her around? We’ll begin preparations!”

The villagers scatter to do their respective things, while Dana just… Stares, baffled at the exchange.

“...Man, they really have a one track mind sometimes, don’t they?” Bun crosses his arms. “Although, since Dedede didn’t stir up trouble when you arrived, they don’t have reason to be suspicious of you yet. Especially because SIr Meta Knight was the one who brought you in…”

“Hey… You alright?”

Dana looks down after Fumu walks up to her.

“I’m, uh… I dunno, I’ve… never really been treated like this before, it’s… I dunno, hard to process everyone wanting to celebrate the fact I came here…”

“...Do you think you can tell us more about where you’re from now? I know you’re starting to settle in, but--”

“I don’t mind, I just…  _ we should probably go somewhere more private, y’know? I also don’t want Dedede listening in… _ ”

Fumu nods, crossing her arms. “We’ll continue our tour and then head up to Kirby’s house. We’ll worry about it then.”

As they continue down the street, Fumu gestures to various buildings, explaining what they are. On the main street, there’s a toy store, convenience store, a bar, the fortune teller’s shop, a bookstore, a gas station, and there’s a restaurant that’s supposedly not so great but has a kind chef. An archeological shop is off to the side of the main road, and she remembers which direction the clinic is in. 

It’s quite a walk up to Kirby’s house, a round concrete dome with a door and window. It’s rather simple and cute, which fits the little guy.

Dana sits in the grass under the tree, staring out at the landscape. A forest, a volcano, the wide blue ocean, and the castle overlooking the village…  _ This  _ is home now. 

“Sooo, we’re finally gonna find out what happened, right?” Bun flops down in the grass in front of her, his sister sitting beside him. And kirby, well… Someone happily hopped onto her lap like a happy little kid starting up at their big sibling. He’s… adorable, for sure.

“When you came here, you were wearing a hospital gown with Holy Nightmare’s logo on it. You didn’t just run from Nightmare... You’re a Demon Beast, aren’t you?”

  
“What?!” Bun jumps up, but Fumu remains sitting-- she already knew, and was watching. Dana’s sure of that much, but she’s still a little tense.

“I’m not sure I understand everything myself…” She starts, leaning back into the tree as she fiddles with her bandages. “Sir Meta Knight told me I was just that, but also… I just know what, when I woke up, all of the things I remembered weren’t real. But someone let me out, and helped me go somewhere safe-- the way Sir Meta Knight came to my rescue, I think they wanted me to meet him… Even when I felt something sinister looming over me back where I woke up, trying to pull me back… I didn’t obey it. I ran.”

She unwraps her bandages, letting only these three bear witness to the marks on her flesh.

“He told me that, while I’m a Demon Beast, I’m also a Star Warrior, not one of Nightmare’s monsters. He took me in to protect me, but… he also wanted to train me to control what Nightmare “gifted” me with, but, also... He… said I was special. I don’t understand why, but… I owe him everything.”

Fumu’s expression softens, and Bun sits back down in the grass.

“I remember before Kirby came here, Kabu told that he foresaw three Star Warriors coming to Pupupuland… Kirby was the first to arrive, and… I think you’re the second. Even if you’re a Demon Beast, if Meta Knight trusts you that much, then you’re our friend, too.”

“...Thank you, Fumu. I’m still not sure what’s going to happen anymore, but…”

Dana looks out at the ocean.

“I’m glad the light led me here.”

“Well…” Fumu climbs to her feet. “It doesn’t look like Dedede’s planning anything today, so you can breathe easy without having to worry about Demon Beasts until you’ve started training.”

“It’s getting late, how about we head back to the village? Everyone was so excited about welcoming you that they might already be finished…”

“Sometimes I wonder if they’re just looking for an excuse to eat a bunch of food that isn’t from Kawasaki’s…” Bun folds his arms behind his head, watching as Dana plucks Kirby from her lap and stands up.

“Poyo poy!”   
  
“You get excited as soon as someone talks about food, huh?” She chuckles. “Well, guess we can’t keep anyone waiting, let’s go see what they’ve prepared, huh?” They did take a while with their tour, even if this discussion was the shorter part of the day… There is still much of Pupupuland to be explored, but it’s all too much for one day alone. With the sun finally starting to lower in the sky, the four of them make their way down to the village.

She’s surprised to see that back in the town square, the villagers have thrown together a welcome party. Food laid out on tables, lights in the tree and multiple citizens excitedly chattering-- silencing the moment they see her walking down the street and getting into position.

Mayor Len spreads his arms. “On behalf of all of us in Pupu village, welcome to Pupupuland!”

In the crowd there are some unfamiliar faces, and some familiar, including the knights. And she-- her face grows red and flustered, shaking hands covering her mouth as she tries not to shyly whimper.

“O-Oh-- Oh god, you’re-- you’re all so nice, thank you…”

“A-Are you alright?”

“Yeah! I-- I’m just not used to this, sorry… I-I guess you could say I’m just… really shy…”

“Oh! Well, I guess we did make a big show out of this…” Mayor Len chuckles, rubbing the back of his head.

“Mingle at your own pace, alright dear?” The kind words come from a woman standing next to the Mayor-- she’s assuming his wife, since they  _ are _ together in front of everyone.

The group majorly breaks off into their own groups to chatter-- it’s honestly a nice little event for them as well as her. Villagers eating from a buffet and talking about their own things, about the joys of having a new face around… As shy as she’s being, she’s glad to be here.

“Dana, can we introduce you to our papa and mama?”

She nods, and Fumu smiles, taking her hand and leading her through the crowd. Near one of the tables is a couple that resembles Bun and Fumu much more than anyone else, so they easily stand out. That must be their mom and dad.

“Mama, papa!” Fumu waves before coming to a stop and letting go of her hand.

“Oh, Fumu! Is this your new friend?”

“Mhh-hmm! I’d like you to meet Dana! She’s the one who crashed here, but since Sir Meta Knight offered her a position, she’s going to be living here now.”

“My, you’re quite young to be traveling alone! And to have crashed here…Your parents must be worried, are you sure it’s alright to settle down here?”

Fumu’s mom… She does raise a fair point, but…

“Actually, I…”

Dana awkwardly rubs her bandaged arm. She doesn’t want to sound rude by saying “Actually, I’m an adult”, so…

“I, uh… don’t know if I have any parents. It’s just me, so…”

“You poor thing… Well, I suppose you do have Sir Meta Knight looking after you now. But since you’re a friend to Bun and Fumu, be sure to come to us if you need anything, okay?”

She dips her head. “I-I will, thank you…”

“It’s a pleasure to meet you-- these two wouldn’t stop talking about you.” Fumu’s father chuckles. “I’m Parm, the Cabinet Minister, and this is my wife Memu.”

“It’s nice to meet you both..! I owe Bun and Fumu my life, as well as the others who came to my aid…” The knights in particular. Meta Knight, Sword, Blade…

“I-I should probably go look at the food, I’ve barely eaten since I came here…” Hell, did she ever eat  _ before _ she came here? Did Nightmare feed her, or was everything administered in those various needles piercing her arms and spine?

She breaks apart from the chatter to look at the assorted plates of food on one of the tables. A lot of it reminds her of cuisine she saw-- she  _ dreamed _ of, from “Earth”. To make it simple for herself, she grabs some sweet rice and fried fish covered in some kind of sauce. Dana sits on the porch of the station, a little lonely, but…

A hand rests on her shoulder.

“Are you enjoying yourself?”

“Oh-- Sword Knight…! Blade Knight…!”

“Dedede seems to be up to something, so while Sir Meta Knight is investigating, we came down here to protect you.”

“I see…”

“...Of course, we’re here to celebrate, too. We’re happy to have you here with us.”

She pauses, setting her plate down before looking up at the knights and smiling. “Thank you-- I’m happy to be here too. Everyone’s so wonderful-- the villagers, Bun and Fumu, Kirby, Sir Meta Knight… and the both of you too.”

There’s a very quiet, near gasp from the two knights. Slowly, they both sit next to her and join her in watching the crowd from this quiet spot.

For a moment, her gaze lingers on the castle in the distance. Is something strange transpiring there? Must be, if Meta Knight is investigating Dedede’s activities right now… Could he be ordering a --...

Her head rings with a splitting pain. And it doesn’t stop there, it tears through her arm and leaves her cringing. She’s quick enough to set the plate down before gripping the side of her head with one hand, trying to keep the whimper of pain down to a minimum.

_ What is this feeling…? Something’s coming. Something’s… _

_ “Dana! _ Are you alright?!” Even with hushed voices, alarm instantly reaches the knight’s words as both of them jump to check on her, both of their hands softly touching her shoulder, barely managing to comfort her for a moment, as her head continues to burn.

“Sword, Blade, what’s going on?”

Bun and Fumu rush over. No one else seems to have noticed, thankfully-- she doesn’t want to cause a scene. She’s already a big focus right now.

_ “My head feels like it’s about to split open…” _ She grits her teeth, forcing her eyes to open-- what is this strange shadow she sees, lingering around where the throne room of the castle is? It wasn’t there before. It wasn’t--

_ “Dana, your eyes…” _

She forces herself to look at her reflection in the window, despite how her head throbs when it moves. Her left eye-- it had been red before, but now, it glows fuschia, with the right one remaining blue, but also holding that ominous glow.

Her gaze snaps back to the castle, and she can see that shadow move, closer, closer...

_ “Something’s coming…” _

She can hear the roar of Dedede’s jeep as it races down the slope. Villagers scream and scatter as the vehicle barrels through their hard work and makes a sharp turn, stopping in front of her with an abrupt halt. The knights jump to their feet, while Kirby scrambles to stand in front of her with his arms out, trying to shield her.

“I hope you brats have enjoyed your evening!” Dedede bellows with a wide grin, holding a great hammer over his shoulder. “I should’ve known you’d be planning a rebellion with our new alien visitor!”

“Dedede, you jerk! We’re just trying to help her feel welcome, why did you have to trash everything?!”

“Because I’m the dictator! There’s already one Kirby too many in my beautiful Pupupuland! But don’t worry, I’m here for Kirby, not our guest!”

Her gaze snaps to the left, and she, despite the searing heat building in her skull, throws herself forward to grab Kirby and roll out of the way of that shadow.

Dana hits the ground with a thump and slides across the pavement, arms wrapped around the pink ball as she furrows her brow at the source of that darkness. A haze her fierce eyes pierce to reveal a Demon Beast. This thing-- it’s sinister. It clouds her mind just looking at it. It stands upright, a single pair of arms with elongated claws. Despite its lack of legs, it seems particularly agile, considering how it attacked. A long tail cracks like a whip as those red eyes lock onto her, teeth gnashing.

“A Demon Beast?! But how did--”

Whatever Bun was saying-- she can’t hear it. The moment the beast’s eyes meet hers, she remembers that feeling back when she was escaping. But now, it’s accompanied by pain ripping through the damage Nightmare left on her arm. She lets go of Kirby and curls in on herself-- No, no, snap out of it! You’re easily influenced, Nightmare must’ve sent a Demon Beast that could put you in this state, he must’ve known already! But she-- She can’t move, even if she tells herself that.

The beast is lowering onto all fours and rearing its head back...

A rush of blue, and Sword Knight sweeps her up, settling next to Meta Knight and Blade Knight. She shivers, remaining pressed against his chest, beads of sweat rolling down her forehead. It’s hard to breathe-- that influence, she can feel it. Like boney claws wrapping around her throat. Like the claws that tried to seize her in that dream after she crashed…

_ “He acts quickly...She didn’t even have a chance to settle in before one of these beasts arrived…” _

“Keep it away from her, she’s in no shape to fight a foe this strong!”

She’s in no shape to do anything here-- Without any training, she has no resistance nor fighting capability. Kirby… he’s the only one who can fight for her, right? Meta Knight will obviously fight to protect her, but he’s barred by Dedede’s orders, too-- and Kirby has to learn to fight for himself, too, right? There’s some sort of difference as to why Kirby was left to grow alone while she was chosen by Meta Knight, but…

She forces her eyes open, to meet those of the beast once more. That menacing grin as it licks its maw, sharp gaze shifting from her to Kirby. It seems to be making a mental note, to go after he next, for she’s already incapacitated due to the sensation she couldn’t yet endure.

The knights keep her away from it, and they maintain that distance even when its attention has wandered to the little pink ball, who puffs up his cheeks like last time. But what can he do without a copy ability?

When the demon lurches forward, claws snapping out towards Kirby, he jumps away, the beast raking its great talons through the cobblestone as it changes aim immediately, hitting Kirby with the rocks and sneering. He rolls backwards, falling victim instantly to the next swipe. Thankfully, it doesn’t wound him, just send the poor kid sailing towards Dedede’s jeep and landing on the hood.

Of course, a beast is still a beast. It charges, ignoring the shouts of the two occupying the vehicle. Kirby scrambles to escape its grasp, and it forms a large dent in the hood as its limbs slam into the metal surface to pursue Kirby. Without a copy ability to inhale, from a beast who seems to yield none…  _ what can he do? _

It is then that through she sees a flicker. Despite the dull attempts from the knights to try to soothe her from the searing pain, despite the way her head burns, she witnesses a familiar light. It strikes the nose of the Demon Beast, allowing Kirby ample chance to run from its clutches before a small fox-like creature materializes, holding a long, thin candle in her maw, a flame of hope flickering on the end of it.

_ “A beast that can’t be inhaled and holds no ability to harness, cheaply pawned from Nightmare but quick to overwhelm young Star Warriors. Inhale this flame, it will solve your predicament and allow you to fight.” _

Kirby’s curious blue eyes gaze up at the creature, and then the candle she drops in front of him. The flame dancing on the wick is enough for him to inhale as he opens his mouth and sucks it in. He jumps into the air, spinning as fire swirls around his head and forms a sort of burning hat. 

The demon’s lips curl back to bare its teeth in a near grin. The rumbling coming from its throat, not just a growl, but words no one else can hear.  _ “Finally, the prey will be more entertaining to hunt.” _

“Come, Warp Star!”

A few moments after Fumu’s shout, a star-shaped object does indeed soar from the sky and sweep Kirby up, allowing much more mobility outside of the range of a clawed monster. The amusement fades as its blindsided by a fireball, a wrathful howl ripping from its lungs as it uses the already busted up jeep as a platform to launch itself towards the warp star, claws outstretched. And it soon becomes doused in flame. 

Ever so slowly, the pain begins to ease. The shadows no longer cloud her mind as the beast’s life fades to dust. As she begins to calm down from that event, the small creature ducks off to the side to meet with the knight just beginning to approach the scene.

“It seems he’s already aware of where she escaped to. That won’t be the first beast he sends with the ability to gradually overtake the mind of escaped subjects.”

Her glowing eyes narrow as she flicks her tail.   
  


“She is vulnerable without training, without your guidance. I can offer only protection until she is ready, but you’re the only one who can teach her how to defend herself and overcome these trials. You can’t wait for her to settle in any longer. If she can’t control the darkness and rise out of the clutches of Nightmare, she won’t survive, and the cycle will have to be restarted.”

He averts his gaze away from her.

“I know this, Wisp. I planned on beginning her training tomorrow, but as you can tell, his majesty’s schemes can’t always be predicted.”

“I understand, but now is a time to expect the unexpected. I am only her guide, you… You are the one entrusted with her safety.”

Wisp stands, padding away without another word uttered, her light flickering away from view. Meta Knight, his cape wrapped around himself, looks back upon the children talking to their new friend, as stressed out as she is, with the two knights still fussing over her.

Training… It will start soon. But it will have to start at the basics. Even if Wisp illustrated the urgency, he himself knows this process can’t be rushed.

He knows better than anyone.


End file.
